Furnace.



No. 635,469. Patented Oct. 24, I899.

, .1. FLAHERTY.

FURNACE.

(Application filed Sept. 1, 1898.) (No Model.)

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JOHN FLAHERTY, OF CHICAGO, ILLIN OIS.

FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 635,469, dated October 24:, 1899.

Application filed. September 1, 1898. $erial No. 690,016. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN FLAHERTY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago,

in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Furnaces, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is in the nature of improved means for feeding coal-dust or otherfuel in a finely-divided state into a furnace designed for its consumption; and my object is to provide a construction of feeding means whereby a steady and even feeding may be effected under conditions insuring practically perfect combustion.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in perspective (certain parts being shown broken) of a furnace equipped with my improved firing means. Fig. 2 is a broken plan section taken at line 2 of Fig. l and showing the angle at which the f lief-streams enter the combustion chamber, and Fig. 3 a broken transverse vertical section showing a detail of construction of the fuel-box.

A represents the combustion-chamber of the furnace; B, the chimney-stack; O, the breech of the chimney, in this case utilized as an air-heating chamber; D, a fuel-box; E, a fuel and air pipe leading from a blower F and communicating with the combustionchamber through two branchpipes E E and E an intake-pipe for the blower, communicating through a branch pipe J with the fuelbox and through an extension E with an airheating coil E preferably located within the chimney-breech and provided exterior to the same with an air-inlet s.

The fuel-box D is provided with outwardly and downwardly sloping sides and with an inverted trough G, of V-shaped cross-section, set into the bottom and forming with the sloping sides of the box and the horizontal bottom sections longitudinal channels H H,

Within which work worm conveyers I and I,

provided with driving-pulleys t.

Slidingly surmounting the ridge of the inverted trough G is a shaker, of saddle-board form, having a member G, provided with laterally-projecting fingers p, resting on each slope of the ridge. The shaker is provided at one end with an operating-handle G The purpose of the shaker is to loosen any dust that may adhere to the sloping sides of the ridge after the coal has been lowered to the top of the ridge. For this purpose the device may be worked back and forth by hand, or meansfor operating it automatically may be provided.

The pipe J joins the pipe E at such an angle as to permit its contents to be readily drawn by suction into the latter, whence it is carried by the aircurrent through the fan, being thereby thoroughly shaken up and commingled with the air. From the fan the thoroughly-mixed air and fuel pass through the pipe E into the branch pipes E E whence it issues in converging streams in substantially a horizontal plane into the front of the furnace, as shown in Fig. 2. The acute angle each tube forms with the furnace-front is preferably in the neighborhood of forty-five degrees, or even less, so that the strong pull present in ordinary constructions is avoided and the particles of carbon are consumed and the heat of combustion communicated to the boiler before the fine particles can be wafted beyond the combustion area or the combus tion-gases can escape to dissipate their heat ineifectively.

The fan F and conveyer I are geared by belts K and M to a drive-shaft L, supported in any suitable manner, and supplied with a pulley L, at which motion is imparted to the shaft. This particular arrangement'of the gearing may be departed from; but it is quite important that fan and conveyer be geared to a common motor or power source, so that both areaffected correspondingly by a change in speed of the motor. The result thus attained is to affect the air and fuel supply cor-.

respondingly, so that approximately the correct proportions are maintained.

The channel H is supplied with a dischargepipe N, which may communicate with the pipe E or with a similar fuel-duct leading to another furnace. Obviously where it is desired to use but one conveyer the second one may be left inoperative or the double channel may be dispensed with, one side of the V be coming a simple deflecting-board or inclined bottom piece.

The operation is as follows: A quantity of coal-dust having been introduced into the box D from a suitable source of supply, the

furnace is heated to the proper temperature for combustion of the fuel-dust by means of a grate-fire, after which the shaft L is set in motion. Air is now drawn in at the intake of the heating-coil and circulated through the latter, whence it passes through the fan and into the combustion-cl1amber. The rapid current causes a suction at the pipe J and the fuel drops under force thereof and under the action of gravity into the pipe E where it is caught up by the air-current and borne rapidly along into the blower, where it is thoroughly mixed with the air. New material is dumped into the pipe J by the action of the screw conveyor, and the air and fuel supply may be increased as desired by a change in speed of the drive-shaft L, as above stated.

It is believed that an air-blast supplied in the manner described is greatly to be preferred to any other fluid blast or to any blast I suppliedin anyother manner. Nevertheless,

for the purpose of certain claims I do not limit myself to the particular blast shown.

An important advantage of my construction is that the fuel-box may be located in any part of the boiler-room or in any available space adjacent thereto. The dischargepoints of the fuel-box may be below the level of the fire-box without injuriously affecting the working for the reason that the screw conveyers work in a horizontal plane and the fuel is raised or carried any desired distance within reasonable limits by the suction action of the blower.

The combined features of a heated-air supply and the thorough commingling of the same with the fuel-dust attained by my construction are of the highest importance in insuring a clean fire, without which a furn ace cannot be successfully operated with fuel of this nature.

Vhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a furnace for burning finely-divided fuel, the combination with the combustion-chamber, or chambers, of a fuel-box provided with downwardly and outwardly diverging sides and an inverted -V-shaped ridge set into the bottom affording channels on either side of the V, a shaker G slidingly surmounting said ridge, ducts leading from said channels near one end to the combustion-chamber, screw conveyers in said channels, air-pipes communicating with said ducts, and a fluid blast connected with the system, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

JOHN FLAIIERTY.

In presence of- R. T. SPENCER, D. W. Lnn. 

